Comparisons between photographic equipment for dental use: DSLR cameras vs. smartphones

Abstract

Objective: to compare the image quality obtained by six cameras used for dental documentation, including four DSLR cameras and two smartphones with different sensor size. Methods: the equipment determined the groups: APSCcan18-55 – Sensor APS-C Canon (EOS T5i) + 18-55 mm lens; APSCcan100 – Sensor APS-C Canon (EOS T5i) + 100 mm macro lens; APSCnik18-55 – Sensor APS-C Nikon (D5100) + 18-55 mm lens; APSCnik100 – Sensor APS-C Nikon (D5100) + 100 mm macro lens; ip1/3” – iPhone with 1/3-inch sensor; ga1/2.6”- Galaxy with 1/2.6-inch sensor. Two set of images -“dental documentation” and “small objects”- were obtained. The photographs were evaluated by three groups: US, undergraduate students; DS, dentists; and DP, dentists with photography experience. Scores between 0 and 10 were assigned. The results were compared by RM Anova and Tukey (α = 0.05). Results: the highest overall scores were obtained with APSCnik100 (8.5). For “dental documentation”, APSCcan18-55 and APSCnik18-55 showed the lowest values, even compared to ga1/2.6” (for US, DS and DP evaluators) and ip1/3” (for US evaluators). For “small objects”, DSLRs resulted in higher mean values compared to smartphones for US and DS. Conclusions: DSLR cameras with 18-55 mm lens and no circular flash should not be used for documentation photographs. DSLR cameras, regardless of lens, are superior to smartphones for small objects photographs.